Bardock's Journey: The Blue Lizard Saga
by bluelizard91
Summary: Part 1. Bardock survives the destruction of Planet Vegeta. Over twenty years later, he ends up on the home planet of the Kakumin race. He finds other Saiyan survivors living with the Kakumin and begins planning for the future. Can the Saiyan race make a comeback, or will everything fall apart before it begins? Rated T to be safe. WARNING! INDEFINITELY ON HOLD!
1. Chapter 1

Paste you

Bardock's Journey: The Blue Lizard Saga

-DBZ-

A/N: Hello, my fellow fans and authors! I've edited this first chapter for typos and some timeline issues, so you'll notice some differences though the chapter is largely the same. I've also changed the story's name somewhat: the series is now "Bardock's Journey", and the different sagas will be put in the title when they are posted. For example, this saga is "Bardock's Journey: The Blue Lizard Saga", the next saga will be "Bardock's Journey: The Space Pirate Saga", ect. As for the website address I tried to post the first time, it didn't work for some reason, so I put it in my profile instead. The website I tried to post before has a bunch of info about the Saiyans and their culture and history, and its all derived straight from the canon source material, so if you're interested go check it out! And while we're on the subject of canon material, I'll be drawing inspiration and dialogue from both the English version and the Japanese version of the anime/manga, so if some dialogue or events sound kind of off, that's probably why. Anyway, enjoy the new improved Chapter 1 of Bardock: The Blue Lizard Saga!

Chapter 1

_What happened?...Where am I?..._

His mind felt incredibly sluggish and vague. He seemed to be lying on his side in a crumpled heap on the ground. Tiny pebbles and dirt-or was it sand?-dug into his cheek and bare arm. There was the sound of water close by. A lone animal shrieked in the distance. A cool breeze blew against his skin and ruffled his hair. He could smell many living things on the wind, trees and plants and animals, and a slightly salty tang that must have been an ocean. He didn't immediately try to get up or even open his eyes; he simply lay there trying to get his thoughts back together…

His eyes flew open and his mind snapped to attention as the horrible memories came flooding back. His crew members, lying bloody and lifeless on the ground…the life of the brother that he never had fading away in his arms, while he could only watch helplessly…mocked and heckled by his own people…facing the tyrant alone…futilely trying to push back the massive sphere of deadly energy aimed for his planet, his home…the final explosion, and his entire race being plunged into the darkness of death…

The flood of memories and his rising anger made him clench his hands and give out a wrathful growl. Ignoring the sand and pebbles that got imprisoned in his hands, he rolled over onto his hands and knees, then his feet. His fists were still balled up in anger and small rocks dug into his palms. The rocks in his hands were drawing blood before he noticed the pain.

He looked down and watched as a thin trickle of blood oozed from between his fingers. He was no stranger to blood; he was a warrior and the son of warriors. After a lifetime of fighting it affected him indifferently at best. But seeing his blood with the knowledge that it was ultimately spilled for nothing-that was a different story…

_"What the…"_

_Bardock wasn't sure what had happened. However much he wanted to deny it, those were indeed his crew members, his friends, lying scattered on the ground, still and silent in death. But how?_

_"B-Bardock?" A weary, pained voice spoke up on his left. He looked that way and saw a battered man lying half buried in debris._

_"Toma!" Bardock rushed over and knelt down beside the injured man. He reached out to support the man's head, his face grim._

_"What's going on here? What happened?" Bardock wasted no time in asking. Toma didn't answer at first. There was an odd smile tugging at the corners of his mouth._

_"What a fool I've been. We should have stayed home tucked in our beds like good children." Toma stated with the air of a condemned man resigned to his execution. A nameless fear gripped at Bardocks heart; had Toma gone mad?_

_"Never mind that, don't tell me the Meatians got the best of you?" Bardock asked, stern but confused._

_"No. We eliminated them quickly."_

_"Then who did this to you?" Bardock demanded sharply. His anger was born from worry, but he managed to hide it._

_"F-Frieza!" Toma spat out bitterly. "He's stabbed us all in the back!"_

_"But that's impossible!" Bardock protested._

_"That rotten Frieza's just been using us." Toma coughed painfully and a trickle of blood dripped down the side of his mouth; he must have sustained major internal injuries. "I-I've already had it, but before long_—cough!_—all the Saiyans are going to be killed by that rat Frieza." Bardock stared at the man laying before him, too horrified by what he had just heard to respond. Toma panted painfully, and struggled to continue._

_"Listen to me, listen well…" Toma panted through the pain of his injuries. "Go back to Planet Vegeta right now! Once there, gather our comrades and defeat Frieza!"_

_Bardock didn't answer. Part of him knew that everything Toma said was the truth, but another part of him still didn't believe it. Toma's breathing became more ragged and strained, he was fading fast. The resigned smile from before appeared back on his face-resigned, yet proud, even as his eyes closed in death._

_"Let him know…how strong the Saiyans…really…are…"_

Bardock deliberately relaxed his hands and let the sand and pebbles fall to the ground where they belonged. As Toma died, Bardock really had no intention of warning his fellow Saiyans back home. Frankly, he hadn't the slightest idea just what he was going to do. Part of him still refused to believe the things that Toma told him.

But the squad that Freiza had sent to kill Toma and the others was still on the planet. It was led by Dodoria, one of Frieza's closest advisors and also one of his strongest fighters. Bardock managed to fight off the flunkies, but Dodoria himself was far more difficult. He tried to kill Bardock with a massive mouth-beam of energy, and he would have succeeded if the bodies of Toma and Bardock's other crewmembers hadn't been caught up in the blast. The bodies of his comrades shielded him from most of the damage, and Dodoria left Bardock for dead.

By then, Bardock knew for sure something was up with Freiza, and staggered his way back to his space pod and back to Planet Vegeta. After a futile attempt to rally the other Saiyans, Bardock had indeed faced off with Frieza…but it had been a useless endeavor. Next thing he knew, he was trying to singlehandedly push back Frieza's Supernova, a massive sphere of deadly energy powerful enough to destroy a planet. It was pointless, he was too weak—a fine example of a Saiyan's strength he turned out to be! In less than a minute he was overwhelmed by the Supernova. The last thing he remembered was incredible pain...and a proud smile of hope.

Bardock shook his head and brought his thoughts back to the matters at hand. Hope or not, he could have sworn he had died confronting Frieza, but his heart was still beating like nothing had happened. That Supernova had so much power in it, how could he have possibly survived it? Confused, Bardock glanced down at himself just to be sure he really had a body and wasn't some sort of disembodied spirit. No, his body was still here, and…

Bardock felt himself all over, just to be sure that he wasn't imagining things. But no, there were no wounds to be found anywhere. The only pain he could feel was some slight bruising in his right side and arm, which he had been laying on when he came to. Now he was really confused. How long had it been since his face off with Freiza? He knew that he had gotten more than a few simple bruises trying to hold back that Supernova, so how much time had passed for his wounds to have healed completely? How had he gotten here? Where was 'here', anyway?

Bardock looked around. He was standing at the bottom of a cliff, on a narrow beach that couldn't have been more than twenty paces from cliff to water line. He didn't know where he was, but it was definitely not Planet Vegeta. For one thing, he knew for a fact that it had been destroyed, even though he had apparently survived somehow. And for another thing, the sky there had been a deep red like blood; here, the sky was yellow and streaked with pink and orange.

The ocean tide ebbed and flowed ten paces away, a sickly grey-green color. A swift tide like this was an oddity for Bardock. On Planet Vegeta, the moon moved through its phases very slowly and became full only once every eight years. As a result, the tide on Planet Vegeta was very subtle, and certainly didn't break in waves upon the shoreline like this.

The water came close and wetted the soles of Bardock's boots, as if to punctuate his rambling thoughts. Bardock stepped back and idly watched the water flow back. It rolled forward again, washing bits of aquatic debris onto the sand. Bardock glanced up at the cliff behind him. It was many dozens of yards above his head and quite rocky. He decided that he may as well figure things out in a spot where his feet wouldn't get wet, and get some scouting done at the same time.

Bardock focused for a moment, and levitated off the ground. He shot up the cliff face, and in an instant landed firmly at the top. In a glance he saw that he was standing in a grassy area, with a forest beginning maybe a hundred paces away. He didn't have time to notice anything else, aside from a startled gasp and blue fist that shot towards him from the right.

He reflexively blocked the incoming blow and lashed out with his right leg in return. He caught his attacker solidly in the stomach, and a pained exhalation of air reached his ears. His attacker staggered back, doubled over in pain and trying to regain his footing. Bardock took the opportunity to settle down into a proper fighting stance. The creature before him didn't seem very strong, but he knew better than to underestimate someone who caught him almost completely off guard.

Bardock took a moment to study his opponent more closely. The creature standing hesitantly before him was blue and furry, and appeared to be a young adult male. The blue fellow wore a loosely fitted, black sleeveless tunic and matching trousers. He was still hunched over at the moment, but would be taller than Bardock if he stood up straight. He was long limbed, slight of build compared to Bardock, and the hands that gingerly covered his sore midriff were long and narrow with only two fingers and a thumb. His bare feet, likewise, had only three toes, two facing forwards and one facing back. A lithe, hairless tail that almost brushed the ground twitched nervously behind him. Vivid red eyes peered at Bardock in curiosity and nervousness, from underneath a shaggy thatch of blue fur that grew and behaved much the same way as regular head hair would on a humanoid. Overall, the blue creature resembled a large furry lizard.

Bardock scowled at the thought of a lizard, it reminded him of that traitor Frieza. The blue fellow made no move to attack again, he simply stood there trying to catch his breath. After a long silence, Bardock relaxed his stance but kept his eyes on the blue fellow. He decided that if there wasn't going to be a fight, there may as well be an interrogation.

"Who are you?" Bardock asked curtly. He didn't realize until after he had spoken that he had used his native language of Saiya-mal, instead of the Universal Standard dialect. The blue fellow wouldn't understand his question at all—

"I could ask you the same thing," the blue fellow replied, still rather breathless. Bardock couldn't hide his surprise. This fellow actually knew Saiya-mal? He frowned in puzzlement and suspicion.

"You have ten seconds to tell me how and why you know my language," he stated in Saiya-mal with a no-nonsense tone. The blue fellow, one hand still coddling his midriff, answered readily enough. It was still a surprise to Bardock, though.

"I learned Saiya-mal from a Saiyan who came here twenty years ago," the blue fellow replied. "There are quite a few Saiyans living here, actually," he added hopefully.

"So there were survivors…" Bardock muttered to himself, surprised but already making plans for the future. If there were enough surviving Saiyans able to have children, the race could very well have another chance at defeating Frieza in the not so distant future.

"Survivors?" The blue fellow asked, concerned.

"Frieza betrayed us. He was using us all along. When we lost our usefulness, he wiped out our planet and most of us with one blast." Bardock gritted his teeth angrily at the memories and growled out his next words. "He took our loyalty and paid us back in our own blood!"

The blue fellow said nothing, but his eyes said everything. Bardock frowned in annoyance at the sympathy he saw in the blue fellow's eyes. He didn't need anyone's pity! Couldn't this guy have a little more tact about the situation?

"That's exactly what the Saiyan who came here warned the King about when he first took service under Frieza," the blue fellow remarked quietly. "He suspected-no, he **knew** something like this would happen but the King wouldn't listen."

"So, the Saiyan who showed up twenty years ago…how did he get here without King Vegeta or anyone else noticing? And why did he come here to begin with? This planet hasn't been purged, apparently…" Bardock allowed himself to ask curiously and regarded the blue fellow suspiciously. The blue fellow hesitated before answering.

"I think it's only fair that you hear the story from the Saiyans themselves," he replied. "Their village isn't very far from here."

Bardock lifted his hand to calibrate his scouter, but remembered that he didn't have it anymore. It had been blown off and destroyed by Dodoria's mouth-blast. Bardock frowned, without his scouter he wouldn't be able to get a reading on another's power level or position. The blue fellow waited quietly for Bardock's answer.

"Take me there," Bardock ordered curtly, folding his arms.

"All right. Just give me a moment to see to my friend…" The blue fellow turned and crouched down beside a short, bulbously built creature in white clothing that Bardock hadn't noticed before. The creature was an odd purple-grey color, and apparently unconscious. The blue creature examined the purple-grey one carefully and checked its pulse. After a moment, he seemed satisfied and lifted up the purple creature, hoisting it onto his shoulder and holding it steady with one arm.

The blue fellow motioned Bardock towards the forest a short distance away, and moved off in that direction himself. Bardock trailed after him, still suspicious. This blue fellow seemed peaceful enough, though first impressions were often deceiving. He was quite concerned about the purple creature's welfare, and had apparently just been startled by Bardock's sudden appearance and only attacked first in self-defense. But what if this fellow wasn't so mild mannered as he seemed? What if there were no other Saiyans on this planet? What if this fellow was planning to turn him over to Frieza for a reward? Bardock didn't know what was going on, so he would simply play along for now and see how things turned out.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hey everyone, another chapter up! You may think that I'm updating fairly regularly right now, but this is only the second chapter so don't expect it to be like this all the time. I'm not going to follow a specific update schedule because I concentrate better when I'm not worried/pressured about something, and so my writing turns out better. When it comes to quality versus quantity, I go for quality. And now, there's a few things that I should elaborate on. First, for those of you who think that the purple alien is familiar, that's because he's a Yardratian. Second, for those of you who think that the blue lizard guy is familiar, that's because his race, the Kakumin, is based on the concept of Nightcrawler from the X-Men franchise. I've only watched the X-Men: Evolution cartoon, but I can safely say that Nightcrawler is by far my favorite X-Man. I guess the Kakumin are like my tribute to Nightcrawler and to the X-Men in general. And third, there's this VegetaxBulma fanfic called 'The Animal I Have Become' by KimiruMai, which uses Old Norse to represent the Saiyan's native language. I liked the idea and decided to borrow it for my own fanfic, but the credit for the idea still isn't mine. If KimiruMai decides to message me and say something like "Hey, that's MY idea! Give it back!" then I'll have to rewrite the chapters and use a different language…I really hope that doesn't happen. I'm already basing the Kakumin language off Japanese, so if I do have to edit the Saiyan's language I'll have to sift through the Internet to find another language that I think would suit the Saiyans…Oh well. All that extra work would serve me right, I guess. Anyway, enough rambling! Enjoy Chapter 2!

Chapter 2

The blue fellow entered the forest with Bardock two steps behind and picked up his speed. Bardock watched as he moved forward briskly, his long reptilian tail waving behind him. The weight of the purple creature didn't seem to slow him down at all. Bardock followed silently, never letting his guide out of sight at any time. He could hear trickling water somewhere close by, and the air was cool and damp. A flock of brightly colored birds flew out of the trees with startled chirps or squawks as they passed. A small furry animal with long floppy ears chattered and scolded from a hollow space in the crook of a tree branch, probably its nest.

Bardock took in his surroundings with only a passing glance, keeping his focus on the blue fellow just in case he tried any funny business. He couldn't risk letting his guard down again for even a second. After all, he didn't actually know this cub; he didn't even know the cub's name.

"Hey, cub." Bardock called to his guide, in Universal Standard on a whim. "What's your name?"

"Oh, I'm sorry," the blue fellow apologized, in heavily accented Universal Standard. "I should have introduced myself earlier." He paused in his walk, balancing his burden carefully. Bardock came to a stop beside him and waited.

"Well, get on with it." Bardock ordered curtly.

"I am Ban'hau of the Kakumin'tokage-musuko." The blue fellow answered Bardock's question in Universal Standard, inserting some words from his native language that Bardock guessed described his people, or perhaps his family's specific clan. Ban'hau made a move to offer his free hand in greeting as he spoke, but thought better of it and withdrew his hand. Bardock grunted acknowledgement and was silent. Ban'hau waited for a moment before speaking up again.

"What is your name, _felagi_?" He asked, still speaking Universal Standard but now using the Saiyan word for 'comrade'. Ban'hau was simply trying to be respectful, and there was nothing wrong with how he addressed Bardock, but Bardock still didn't feel comfortable with how well this foreigner knew Saiya-mal.

"Bardock," the man of that name replied, in a tone that clearly said he didn't approve of the subject at this point in time. Ban'hau got the hint and dropped the subject of introductions. Instead he turned and continued walking.

Bardock followed a short distance behind as before. He could see Ban'hau glancing back now and then, clearly wanting to talk more and learn more about Bardock. Bardock made an annoyed noise in his throat at the thought. If that blue cub thought a few appropriate words in his native language could get him to open up so easily, he could think again.

The two of them walked for maybe ten minutes before Ban'hau stopped and turned back to Bardock. Bardock stopped beside him and eyed him evenly. Ban'hau looked somewhat uncomfortable, and cleared his throat before speaking.

"The Saiyan village isn't very far now. Once we enter the village, I highly recommend that you meet the village chiefs as soon as possible. I will inform them of your arrival, but then I will take my friend to the doctor as soon as I can." Ban'hau said. Bardock rolled his eyes. Yes, he was well aware that there was a village close by. He could hear the murmur of people talking and doing things, and his nose had been picking up the scent of wood smoke for the last five minutes.

"I don't need someone to tell me what to do. I'm not a cub and I'm not stupid either." Bardock all but growled at Ban'hau; he was feeling irritated and edgy. He still hadn't figured out how he had gotten on this planet or how he had survived Freiza's Supernova, because Planet Vegeta certainly didn't. If the planet had survived, he would have to assume that he was going crazy. Of course, just because he was irritable didn't mean he had to take it out on the cub.

Ban'hau spoke up again, hesitantly switching back to Saiya-mal.

"I don't mean to be patronizing, but the village chiefs prefer to be up to date on everything when at all possible, and a new Saiyan in the village is something they would want to know about." Bardock refrained from sighing and grunted in agreement. Ban'hau seemed satisfied and walked forward briskly, probably eager to introduce Bardock to the rest of the village.

Bardock followed his guide out of the trees and found himself standing on the edge of a very large clearing. There were about four dozen huts arranged in three widely spaced circles around a community firepit. On one side of the huts there was an area allotted for cultivating vegetables and edible plants, which took up almost half of the entire clearing. On the side opposite from the garden, there was a narrow footpath leading into the trees, probably to a nearby stream or other point of interest.

In the garden, amongst the huts, and around the center firepit, were Saiyans of every rank working and talking. Even now, as Bardock looked, about a dozen Saiyans, adolescent and middle aged, entered the clearing from the footpath. Each person carried one or two buckets of water, and the adolescents talked animatedly with each other or listened with respect to what their elders had to say. Bardock had a sudden feeling of coming home after a long journey.

"Come, Bardock," Ban'hau's voice brought him out of his thoughts. "The village chiefs will want to meet with you as is only proper-"

"Yeah, yeah, I'll go meet the village chiefs, stop nagging me," Bardock muttered. Ban'hau nodded, and turned to go into the village. Bardock followed close behind, affecting disinterest but observing everything as nostalgia washed over him. As the two of them passed through the circles of huts, people noticed them and paused in their work to observe the newcomer. Some of them shouted greetings, and Bardock nodded curtly in acknowledgement. As Ban'hau led him into the center area of the huts, Bardock noticed that a few people left their tasks and followed curiously, keeping a respectful distance.

There were maybe a dozen Saiyan men and women standing around the firepit, all middle aged and dressed in furs and cured leather as all the Saiyans were, with the exception of Bardock who was still wearing his armor. His battered armor and torn cloth trousers looked rather odd beside the soft, glossy furs that the others wore. Ban'hau raised his voice to get everyone's attention.

"_Hilmir-margr_, a new _felagi_ has come to us!" Ban'hau called out, and there was a general shift in attention around the firepit. Everyone was now eyeing Bardock with what would have been neutral expressions to someone unfamiliar with Saiyans. Bardock could see the interest and curiosity in their eyes, however. Three Saiyans separated themselves from the group and approached Bardock and Ban'hau. Ban'hau stepped forward to greet them, crossing his right arm over his abdomen in the salute that an Elite Saiyan would use to greet an equal. The three Saiyans responded in kind.

Bardock's curiosity was piqued. How could such a mild mannered fellow as Ban'hau become the equal of a Saiyan Elite? He filed away that bit of information to think on later. Ban'hau lowered his arm and waited for the chiefs to speak.

The head chief, a tall, agile looking man with longish hair and an angular face, spoke first.

"Ban'hau, _felagi_…who is this man, and when and how did he come here?" The head chief motioned towards Bardock as he asked, getting straight to the point. Ban'hau replied deferentially.

"He is a Saiyan I met near the little beach north of here. I don't know how long he has been here, or how he came to this planet. I saw no sign of a space pod near his location. I've only just found him and Grolo," here Ban'hau motioned at the still unconscious purple creature he carried, "and brought them here." Ban'hau ended somewhat apologetically. The head chief frowned in thought at this and regarded Bardock for a moment. Bardock met his gaze but kept his head somewhat inclined in deference to the other man's higher rank. The head chief spoke up again, still addressing Ban'hau.

"Is Grolo injured?"

"Not badly, it seems. He has been unconscious since I found him, though."

The head chief nodded at one of the huts in the inner circle. "Get him to Mitsuba, then." Ban'hau saluted again and moved towards the hut which the head chief indicated. He ducked inside with the purple creature as the head chief turned his attention to Bardock.

"What is your name and rank, _landi_?" The head chief asked, using the Saiyan word that meant essentially the same as _felagi_, but was used only towards a fellow Saiyan. Bardock placed his right fist on his heart and bowed deeply, in the manner of a Third Rank Saiyan towards a Saiyan of higher rank but not royalty.

"Squad Captain Bardock, Third Rank," he replied promptly like the soldier he was. He straightened up from his bow, but kept his fist over his heart until his superior should address him, as was proper. The head chief's expression changed from neutral to curiosity.

"Kale, First Rank," the head chief responded with a simple nod. Bardock lowered his hand and waited. Kale didn't hide his interest as he continued.

"You are Toma's squad captain?" Kale asked, in a tone that said he already knew the answer.

"Yes. You knew him?"

"Toma was my elder brother." Kale replied readily. "He always spoke quite highly of you, both as a leader and a friend." A shadow crossed Kale's face as he continued. "I wish that he could be here to welcome you himself."

"You already know, then?" Bardock asked. Kale nodded.

"Toma died twenty-two years ago, when Planet Vegeta was destroyed," Kale affirmed quietly.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N 17/2012 EDIT: Grrrrr…I just now noticed some typos in this chapter and fixed them…Don't you just hate it when you spend a lot of time working on a project, and then you find out that there are STILL mistakes in it afterwards? *Sigh* It serves me right for getting caught up in the action of my own story…

Chapter 3

Bardock couldn't hide his confusion. Kale regarded him silently, puzzled at his response.

"What do you mean, Toma died twenty-two years ago?" Bardock demanded. After a moment's puzzled silence, Kale spoke slowly.

"We have a lot to discuss, apparently…I'm going to ask you some questions now. I want you to answer them as clearly as possible." Kale took a deep breath and let it out, pondering. "What is the last thing you remember, before finding yourself here?" Kale asked.

Bardock frowned. "I was confronting Freiza, but of course I wasn't strong enough to defeat him…"

"An admirable endeavor, all the same. And what prompted this course of action?" Kale prodded. Bardock clenched his fists in anger as he remembered.

"Freiza betrayed us all…He ordered Dodoria to kill my crew while they were on a mission to Planet Meat. That was where Toma died-at least, that's how I remember it."

"…I see. Were you there when this happened?" Kale asked.

"No, I was on Planet Vegeta, in a healing tank," Bardock replied absently. What was going on? Had twenty-two years really passed since Toma's death? Kale continued questioning him, with Bardock giving short answers.

"How much time passed between your discovery of Toma's death and the destruction of Planet Vegeta?"

"Eight days' travel by pod-four days from Planet Vegeta to Planet Meat, and four days back."

"Did anything else happen while you were on Planet Meat?"

"Dodoria and his team were still on the planet and tried to kill me. I defeated his flunkies quickly enough, and Dodoria tried to finish me off himself. The bodies of Toma and the others got caught up in the blast and shielded me from most of the damage. That's when I knew something was up." What Bardock said was the truth, just not all of it. He didn't say anything about the weird stuff that had happened during the fight. No one would have believed him, and he still had trouble believing it himself.

"When you faced Freiza, did he say anything in particular?"

"No. If he had, it would have been the usual: us Saiyans are a bunch of filthy monkeys that are only still alive because Frieza allows it, or some such thing."

Kale fell silent, pondering. Then he asked, "When you were facing Freiza, was it during that time that you fell unconscious?"

"Yes." Bardock replied simply.

"How did this happen, exactly?"

"Freiza launched a Supernova straight at the planet. I couldn't stand the thought of running away, so I tried to hold it back…You can imagine how well that turned out." Bardock scowled. Kale was surprised.

"You actually went head to head with a Supernova from Freiza and survived? How is it that you are unscathed?" Kale asked disbelievingly, staring at Bardock's fully healed body despite the obvious cracks in his armor. Bardock shrugged with an indifference that hid his own confusion. Kale stared a moment longer, and sort of shook his head in amazement. He went back to interrogating Bardock.

"How long has it been since you found yourself on this planet?"

"Ten minutes, more or less."

"Do you remember anything that happened between the Supernova and waking up here?"

"No."

Kale was silent as he mulled over the information he had heard so far.

"Was Grolo there when you woke up?" Kale asked after a moment.

"Yes, though he was not actually with me," Bardock replied. "Ban'hau found him first, I think."

Kale frowned in thought. "Perhaps Grolo would have some answers. Bardock, come with me."

"Yes sir," Bardock responded promptly, and fell in step behind Kale as he moved towards the hut he had indicated earlier to Ban'hau. The other two chiefs followed Kale and Bardock as far as the door, where they stopped and took up a position on either side like guards.

Kale and Bardock continued inside. In a moment, Bardock found himself standing in a single room that was lit only by a open fire pit in the center, and the sunlight streaming in through the doorway and a smoke hole in the ceiling. There were cots covered with animal furs ranged along one side of the room, and on the other side were shelves full of small wooden boxes and clay jars. These were all filled with herbs and medicinal ointments, if the pungent smell was anything to go by. Bardock wrinkled his nose, trying hard not to sneeze.

Only two of the cots were occupied, and it was towards one of these that Kale moved. Ban'hau was already there, along with a elderly Saiyan woman who was bending over the alien called Grolo, who was layed on the cot. She was the oldest Saiyan in the village that Bardock had seen so far. She was carefully examining Grolo's eyes when Kale stepped up.

"Mitsuba, how is he?" Kale asked the woman, apparently Mitsuba. She studied Grolo's eyes for a moment longer before answering.

"He has a few bruises, nothing serious. No internal injuries or bleeding or anything like that."

"Will he wake up soon?" Kale prodded. Mitsuba shot a rather annoyed glance at him.

"He'll wake up when he wakes up, boy. I just said that he's not seriously injured, so what's your hurry?"

"We have some questions for him, and-"

"Marglod's eye, boy! He's lying unconscious in bed and all you're thinking about is getting answers out of him! If you're so desperate for conversation then talk to Ban'hau here, or Tarble!"

Bardock gasped quietly, but no one noticed. Kale was trying to explain the situation to Mitsuba, but she only started lecturing him on the virtues of patience, apparently forgetting about Grolo for the moment. Ban'hau looked conflicted, probably wondering if he should try to rouse Grolo himself or if he should calm Mitsuba down so she could focus on the task at hand.

Bardock ignored them and studied the Saiyan man laying down a few cots away from Mitsuba and the others. He was young, no older than Ban'hau, and short for a Saiyan. His upper body was bare of clothing, and his midriff was heavily bandaged. The man was laying flat on his back but was fully alert, observing Kale and Mitsuba with some amusement as they talked and argued back and forth. He didn't pay much attention to Bardock until he quietly stepped up to the cot.

"You are Tarble? King Vegeta's youngest?" Bardock asked, somewhat uncertainly.

"Yes, I am," the other Saiyan replied. His voice was slightly strained, but so boyish that it made him seem even younger than he looked. "You must have arrived recently, I've never seen you before. What's your name?"

Bardock placed his fist over his heart and knelt on the floor beside the cot that Tarble was laying in, before replying.

"Squad Captain Bardock, Third Rank," He said, just as he did to Kale outside. Tarble looked somewhat uncomfortable at Bardock's actions.

"Please, rise," Tarble requested. "There is no need for court formalities here."

Bardock stood up and let his hand return to his side again. He studied the younger Saiyan in the cot for a moment.

"Are you injured very badly?" Bardock allowed himself some slight concern. Tarble sighed.

"I was, though it could have been worse, considering. My ship crashed on this planet a few weeks ago, and I got caught by a steel beam that rebounded on impact. I don't think it was actually fatal, but luckily my ship had landed close enough to this village for someone to hear it and come investigate."

"You feel well enough to talk, anyway. That's a good sign." Bardock pointed out. Tarble gave a rueful half smile.

"Yes, that is true. It's nice to talk again; Mitsuba wouldn't let me talk at all for the first week that I was here. That steel beam had almost punctured my lung, you see, and Mitsuba wasn't taking any chances with it. She is what you might call 'properly paranoid' about these things."

Bardock nodded, he had pretty much guessed that last part already. "You still seem a bit strained, so I should probably let you get back to resting."

"Yeah. It was nice to meet you, Bardock."

Bardock wasn't quite sure how to respond to such a friendly tone from someone of royalty, but he was saved from possible embarrassment by someone calling him.

"Bardock, come here! Grolo's awake." It was Ban'hau. Mitsuba shot him a disapproving look.

"Don't shout when there are patients resting," she scolded.

Bardock left Tarble and joined Kale and the others by Grolo. Grolo was indeed awake. He looked confused and was trying to sit up in bed, but Mitsuba wouldn't let him.

"It's alright Grolo, you're on Haah-Furusato in Heimili Village."

Grolo looked at Mitsuba and his eyes came back into focus. "Mitsuba?" He asked. He had an odd, gurgling voice.

"Yes, Grolo, it's me. How are you feeling?" Mitsuba asked as she studied him.

Grolo didn't answer her question at first. Instead he asked in Universal Standard, "Where is the Saiyan?"

Mitsuba glanced at Bardock and Kale before replying in kind. "You'll have to be a little more specific than that, Grolo. There are four Saiyans in this room right now. What did yours look like?"

Grolo looked around at the people standing about, and when he saw Bardock he relaxed visibly. "Ah, you're awake. I see you're feeling well enough to be up and about."

Bardock said nothing and simply stood there with his arms crossed. Kale spoke up.

"Is Bardock here the saiyan that was with you?"

"Yes, he was with me, and then everything happened so quickly…"

"What happened? Tell us everything," Mitsuba prodded.

Grolo regarded Mitsuba silently, quizzically. "That's a long story, Mitsuba…are you sure you want to hear it all?"

Mitsuba gave him a look that clearly said tell-me-everything-right-now-or-else.

"You may as well tell her, Grolo," Kale pointed out. "She won't leave you alone until you do."

Grolo sighed in resignation and frowned for a moment, gathering his thoughts.

"Alright, I'll start at the beginning…"


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hey everyone, I'm back! Did you like the cliffhanger in the previous chapter? ; ) MUAHAHAHAHA! FEAR THE CLIFFHANGER! Okay, I'll stop now. If this update didn't come fast enough for you, well, it's here now. It's better than no update at all, right? I said this in my profile, and I'll say it here too: I'm deliberately not going to follow a specific update schedule because inspiration does not come at my beck and call, and I do have a life outside of writing stories. If I don't follow a set schedule, I don't worry about deadlines and such, which means I can focus solely on my writing…hopefully, anyway. I did have a rather busy Christmas week, so I didn't make much progress on this chapter until after the 25th. By the way, I'm sorry that the story seems a little slow now, since everyone is just standing around talking, but its important for setup and context and whatnot. I promise the action will pick up soon! Just be patient with me, alright? For now, here are some surprises in Chapter 4!

Chapter 4

Grolo took a breath and began his story.

"Twenty-two years ago, my brother Logor was coming back to Yardrat from another planet via Instant Transmission. A side effect of Instant Transmission is that the traveler can sometimes catch brief glimpses of places that he passes on the way. My brother happened to pass by Planet Vegeta, just as it was about to be destroyed by the one called Frieza." Bardock, Kale, and Mitsuba scowled at the mention of Frieza, but Grolo continued talking.

"My brother didn't know exactly what planet it was at the time, but he caught a glimpse of this Saiyan attempting to hold back a very powerful sphere of energy, which would have gone straight for the planet otherwise. The Saiyan was moments away from death, but Logor admired his determination and bravery, and managed to carry him out of harm's way with his Instant Transmission. Logor took the Saiyan back to Yardrat and brought him to me for his injuries. I did my best to help him, but no matter what I did, I was unable to bring him back to consciousness."

Grolo would have continued, but Bardock interrupted at this point.

"Wait a minute. If all this happened twenty-two years ago like you said, does this mean that I've been in a coma the whole time that I was on your planet?" Bardock asked suspiciously.

"Yes, you were in a coma for all this time." Grolo affirmed. Bardock raised an eyebrow, not at all convinced that he had essentially been sound asleep for years on end. Mitsuba shot him an annoyed look for interrupting but Bardock ignored it. Grolo continued his story.

"Logor brought the Saiyan to me, but I was unable to wake him up. I would have taken him to another planet with more advanced medical technology, but when I went to reserve a place for him I learned of Planet Vegeta's destruction. People were saying that Planet Vegeta was destroyed by a meteor, but I had my suspicions about Frieza. I had heard about what sort of person he was, and how jealously he guarded whatever power he could get. He certainly would have his motives for getting the Saiyans out of the way…I knew that if word was passed along to Frieza about a Saiyan survivor, he would not rest until he had eliminated the Saiyan himself. As such, it was far safer for the Saiyan to stay on Planet Yardrat. We don't get many visitors, so it was a relatively easy matter to keep his existence a secret."

Mitsuba cleared her throat to get Grolo's attention. "I have two questions. First, if Bardock was safer on your planet, why were you apparently trying to bring him to this one? The Kakumin don't have any more advanced technology than your people do, after all. And second, you and some of the other Yardratians have visited us many times during the past twenty-two years. Why have you only just told us of a Saiyan on your planet, instead of right at the start years ago?" Mitsuba frowned in disapproval at Grolo. Grolo didn't seem nervous.

"Last question first. The others didn't say anything about the Saiyan because I asked them not to. I myself didn't tell anyone here about the Saiyan until now because of a random case of paranoia. On the one hand, as you have said, the Kakumin technology is no better than ours, so telling you of him and moving him here would have likely made his injuries worse, if not killed him outright. It certainly would not have accomplished anything. On the other hand, I had the vague idea that in the event of Frieza or his men coming to this planet and discovering the Saiyans, it would be better if none of you knew about the Saiyan on my planet, and vice versa. If none of you knew about a survivor on another planet, then there could be no way that you would communicate such an idea to the enemy, even by accident, and so make them suspicious. As such, if no one suspected that there was still another Saiyan alive, then he would have a better chance of training in secret until he became strong enough to defeat Freiza and avenge his race."

"A random case of paranoia, you say?" Bardock muttered to himself, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at Grolo. For a 'vague idea', that was thought out rather well. He was even less convinced of the purple creature's good intentions than he was of the idea that a Saiyan could be in a years-long coma. Mitsuba shot another annoyed glare at him before addressing Grolo again.

"And now, why were you trying to bring him to our planet?" Mitsuba asked somewhat impatiently. Grolo furrowed his brow in thought. He replied after a moment's silence.

"There was a spaceship from another planet coming towards my village, and apparently going to crash. When it was obvious that the ship wasn't going to land properly, it was already mere seconds away from impact. I tried to get Bardock out of my house and away from danger as fast as I could, but once inside I panicked and did the first thing I could think of…I brought him here with Instant Transmission."

"What did the ship look like?" Kale asked. Grolo replied promptly this time.

"It was a Konatsian ship. I-"

"Konatsian? Are you sure?"

Everyone turned at the sudden outburst from Tarble. He was trying to sit up in bed and looking very worried about something. Mitsuba blinked in confusion for a moment.

"Yes, he just said that it was a Konatsian ship," she replied slowly. "Should we be worried about that?"

"The ship…how big was it, and what color was it?" Tarble was now upright in his cot, gamely ignoring the pain that he must have been feeling at the moment. Mitsuba hurried over to his cot and began scolding.

"Don't try to sit up unless I say you can! Just lay down and don't get in a fuss about things." Mitsuba all but physically pushed Tarble back down into a laying position on the cot. Tarble began to look rather frustrated.

"Grolo, how big was the ship?" He asked again, almost pleadingly. Grolo looked confused, but was catching on to the fact that the situation was more grim than it seemed.

"It was rather small…I don't think there could have been room for more than three or four people, including the pilot…" Grolo replied thoughtfully. "As for color, it was silver with a greenish-blue-"

"Eye? A greenish-blue eye on the forefoot of the ship?" Tarble finished abruptly, with an almost frantic look on his face.

"Yes…" Grolo affirmed slowly. Tarble looked stricken.

"I need to go to Yardrat, now!" Tarble tried to sit up again, but Mitsuba wouldn't let him.

"Tarble, you're not going anywhere until you tell us exactly what's going on!"

"My family! My family needs me!" Tarble insisted jaggedly, pleading with everyone to understand. Mitsuba seemed taken aback by Tarble's mention of a family, but she wouldn't let him so much as sit up again.

"Tarble, you're staying right here until you are healed! You will be of no help to your family if you kill yourself first! And don't say that I'm overreacting," she cut off Tarble's next protest with no regard for his royal blood, "Because I'm right and you know it! Now calm down and tell us what's going on." Mitsuba crossed her arms and shot Tarble a look that clearly said do-what-I-say-if-you-want-to-live.

Tarble calmed himself with some obvious effort, and relaxed somewhat against his pillow. He took a deep breath.

"All right, I'll just say it and get it done with," He sighed wearily. "I have a Konatsian wife, and a half Konatsian daughter. The greenish-blue eye on a silver ground is the emblem of my wife's family House. I won't be able to go to Yardrat, so could someone else go and make sure they are all right?"

"I can go, if Mitsuba thinks I am well enough," Grolo offered. He looked inquiringly at Mitsuba, who didn't seem very enthusiastic about it.

"All right, you can go back home," She relented grudgingly. Ban'hau, who had been silent all this time, spoke up.

"One of the other Kakumin can go too, in case Grolo is not well enough to do Instant Transmission." Grolo acknowledged Ban'hau's offer with a nod, and got out of bed.

"I had best go now," Grolo pointed out. Ban'hau nodded.

"One of the Kage'tokage can take you home," Ban'hau offered. "Wait here, I will go tell them." Ban'hau promptly left the hut on his task, hardly waiting for Grolo's acknowledgement. Grolo followed him, more slowly, most likely to get some fresh air. Kale, Bardock, Mitsuba, and Tarble were left inside. Mitsuba sort of sighed, like she hoped things would be a little less hectic now. She turned away from Tarble on the cot and crossed the room to the shelves that held the medicines. She began rummaging through them, clearly looking for something. Bardock idly thought it seemed rather careless of her to not have her medicines organized efficiently.

Kale turned to Tarble.

"You have a Konatsian wife? How did this happen?" Kale asked hesitantly, like he wasn't sure how he should feel about it. Tarble took a deep breath and let it out, like he was bracing himself for something painful.

"For as long as I can remember, I have lived on Planet Konats, living and thinking like one of them," Tarble replied slowly. "Many years ago, I had been sent there as a baby. I had been sent away from Planet Vegeta because I was too weak. Perhaps you have heard of thatt?"

Kale looked thoughtful. "I did hear of King Vegeta's wife becoming pregnant with a second child, but the way I heard it the Queen died in childbirth, and the child died with her."

Tarble sighed sadly. "That is only half true. My mother did die when she gave birth to me, but despite being so weak I was strong enough to live on. I had a power level of 1, and my father was so ashamed of having such a weak son that he kept me hidden in the palace away from everyone else. I'm not sure if even my brother knew about me."

"If you were so weak why didn't the King just kill you at the start, instead of keeping you hidden?" Bardock asked, bluntly. Tarble closed his eyes and sighed again.

"When my father learned of my weakness, I have no doubt that he considered such a course of action." Tarble replied quietly. "I can only guess that it was my royal blood that kept him from killing me for my pathetic strength. He likely felt that he had a moral obligation to me…And when Freiza asked for my brother, my father sent me away before Freiza could learn of me. He felt an obligation for that much, at least."

"And how do you know of all that?" Kale asked curiously. "Could you remember everything that happened back then, even as a baby?"

"No, that's not it," Tarble sighed, and hesitated. He cast an inquiring glance at Mitsuba, much to Kale and Bardock's curiosity. Mitsuba sighed and spoke up.

"Tarble learned of all that from me," Mitsuba replied, resignedly. "His mother…was my grand-daughter."

A/N: FEAR THE CLIFFHANGER! LOL! Probably not the best place to end the chapter, but I'd rather not let it be all long and drawn out, either…See ya next time!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Hi, everyone, I'm back! I posted the first chapter of a new story a little while ago. It's an X-Men: Evolution story with a character from the original comics thrown in. If you're interested, feel free to check it out! If you just want to know what happens next in Bardock's Journey, well, here's Chapter 5! It's a little bit longer, and there's some more talking in this chapter, no big fight scenes yet. Note that I said "No big fight scenes yet"… The (hopefully) epic fighting will come eventually, I promise!

Chapter 5

Kale and Bardock were silent for a moment. Bardock spoke first.

"You…are Prince Tarble's great-grandmother?"

Mitsuba nodded, somewhat irritated. "Yes, I am. I don't see why you have to make a fuss about it, though."

Mitsuba's growing scowl promised severe retaliation if anyone pressed her further. Apparently, her family tree was a rather touchy subject. Kale and Bardock were silent, and Tarble spoke past the awkwardness in the air.

"How long will it take for Grolo and the Kage'tokage to reach Planet Yardrat?"

"Just a few minutes, once Grolo and the Kage are ready to depart," Mitsuba replied, relieved at the change in subject. Tarble nodded and closed his eyes, somewhat wearied by his recent emotional exertions. Mitsuba noticed this and became all business again.

"You should rest, Tarble. I'll get some food ready, you'll need to keep your strength up if you want to heal quickly. And you two," here Mitsuba turned to Kale and Bardock in her typical scolding manner, "If you want to stand around and talk, then take it outside and let Tarble get his rest! Go on now!"

Kale made no comment, apparently used to Mitsuba's reprimanding ways, and motioned Bardock to follow him outside. The female Saiyan promptly busied herself with dried meat and vegetables at the fire.

The two other head chiefs were still standing in their places by the door when Kale and Bardock came out of the hut. Kale dismissed them and turned to Bardock.

"Are you going to stay here with us?"

Bardock blinked. "I was planning on it…It's not like I have anywhere else to go."

"Well, we'll be glad to give you a place here," Kale responded with a slight but genuine smile. The smile lasted only for a moment.

"That probably sounded like a silly question to you, but the reason I asked is because the last Saiyan who came to this planet didn't accept the offer to stay." Kale explained.

"Really? Who was that?" Bardock asked. Kale regarded him thoughtfully before replying.

"This Saiyan looked a lot like you, though lighter in the skin. He called himself Turles."

Bardock nodded in recognition. "That was my younger brother."

Kale gave a grunt in acknowledgement. Bardock pressed on.

"Why didn't Turles stay here?"

Kale shrugged in resignation. "He never mentioned any details. He had 'places to go and things to do', and that was all he would ever say about it. He left the planet the first chance he got. That was about five years ago, now."

Bardock frowned in disapproval. Not telling anyone his plans was exactly the sort of thing that Turles would do. That lack of proper communication was the one reason why Bardock never let him join his squad. And, from what Kale just told him, the little schemer even went so far as to leave Planet Vegeta and strike out on his own. The only good that came of that was Turles surviving the planet's destruction. Bardock's thoughts were interrupted by Kale.

"All of the huts here are already occupied, but I'm sure someone could give you a place to sleep until we can get some more built," Kale said, getting back to practical matters. Bardock nodded.

"How long will it take to build another hut?" Bardock asked.

"Half a day, once we have all the materials gathered," Kale replied. "We can begin gathering building supplies as soon as tomorrow if needed."

"All right." Bardock responded simply.

Kale was about to say something else when a sound rose out of the forest from the north. All the Saiyans in the clearing looked up from their tasks to listen. It was a song, a chorus of male voices lifted up in a simple and haunting melody with no actual lyrics. A half forgotten memory of his mother singing him to sleep floated up to the surface of Bardock's mind…As the singing came close enough to be heard clearly, Bardock recognized it fully. _Songr-Veidimadr_, the Song of the Huntsman.

Presently, a group of adults and teenagers, all male, broke out of the trees into the clearing. There were a dozen of them, and almost all carried a large dead animal slung across his shoulders. Some were furry warm-blooded animals, and some were the cold-blooded type with leathery hides. Each animal was fully twice as long as the man carrying it was tall, with an equally respectable weight and girth. The young man in the lead had an animal so large and bulky that he had to drag it along on the ground with the help of one of the others. As the hunting party entered the clearing this young man broke off his enthusiastic singing to shout to the entire village.

"I did it! I killed a Hidoi-kemono!"

This news was greeted with cheers and exclamations of approval. Bardock, curious, turned to Kale.

"What is 'hidoi-kemono'?" He asked. Kale smiled.

"It's a Kakumin term that simply means 'terrible beast', and for good reason. A Hidoi-kemono is notoriously short tempered, and has been known to attack and destroy a village for no apparent reason. As hard as it may seem to believe, a single Hidoi-kemono is easily a match for most Saiyans. During our stay on this planet, killing one of these 'terrible beasts' has become something of a rite-of-passage with the younger generation. Mezai, there," Kale nodded in the direction of the excited young man in the lead, "will probably be surrounded by many new friends at dinner this evening."

Bardock studied the young man as the hunting party gathered the slain animals together at one side of the community firepit. Mezai was in his early twenties, tall and compactly muscular with shoulder length hair that was just as black and spiky as everyone else's. Bardock could tell by Mezai's facial features that he was from a low class family. The man who helped him with the Hidoi-kemono was clearly his father, if the physical resemblance and the pride in his eyes was anything to go by.

As Bardock watched, most of the women left their tasks and came forward to help the men skin and dress the animals prior to cooking the meat. Kale spoke up again.

"I still have some business to finish up for the day, so you should mingle with the others until the food is ready. We will discuss sleeping arrangements and such after dinner."

Bardock nodded absently, and Kale disappeared into the crowd. Bardock looked around and found a good vantage point, leaning against one of the huts in the center ring. He stood there observing the scene with a neutral expression.

Some of the men and a few of the women began removing the pelts from the slain animals, while most of the other women hurried to bring out cooking utensils from the huts, in preparation to cook the meat when it was ready. After a little while the pelts were fully removed and ready to be cured, and the women began cutting up the meat so it would be easier to cook. The men carried the animal hides to a large hut on the outskirts of the village, clearly the place set aside for curing and processing such things.

A few of the women who didn't help with the meat began carrying baskets of vegetables from the community garden and arranging buckets of water to clean the produce. Most of the teenagers and younger children in the village helped with the vegetables as well.

The meat was being spiked on spits and arranged over the fire for optimum cooking when the young man called Mezai noticed Bardock standing by himself. Bardock eyed the younger man evenly as he approached.

"Hey, you're new here, aren't you?" Mezai promptly asked. Bardock nodded curtly, somewhat annoyed. Mezai looked a little sheepish.

"Heh, sorry…I guess you've been hearing that a lot lately."

"Yeah." Bardock replied shortly. Mezai stood there, awkwardly. Bardock spoke up after a moment's silence.

"Kale mentioned that a Hidoi-kemono is a match for most Saiyans. Is that true?"

Mezai grinned, eager to tell his story.

"Yeah, that was a tough fight. A Hidoi-kemono can go just about anywhere on the ground, in the water or in the trees; even attacking it from the air is tricky because it can jump so well."

Bardock listened to these facts with more interest than he showed. "How long did the fight last?"

"Oh, I was attacking and counter-attacking for a good hour, at least," Mezai mused. Bardock blinked in surprise.

"Counter-attacking? Really?"

"Yeah! For whatever reason, ki attacks don't do much damage to a Hidoi-kemono, so I had to get up close and personal to land a blow. And the crazy part is, a Hidoi-kemono can reason and plan almost as well as a Saiyan! It got me real good on my back here, see?" Mezai turned around and showed Bardock a large clumsy leaf bandage, peeking out from beneath the collar of his animal hide tunic.

"I tend to focus too much on what's right in front of me, and I end up not paying attention to my blind spots. The Hidoi-kemono figured that out real quick." Mezai explained. Bardock was surprised, but it soon turned into an impressed smirk.

"If all of that is true, it's no wonder you yelled about it to anyone who would listen. I might want to take a crack at one of those things myself, sometime."

Mezai rubbed the back of his neck in a half flattered, half embarrassed way.

"Yeah, it's about time I managed something like this…" Bardock raised an eyebrow.

"You've tried to fight one of those before?"

Mezai shook his head. "No, this was my first time. I'm not much of a go-getter, but Dad really wants me to keep getting stronger like everyone else. He was a Super Elite, back on Planet Vegeta, and he wants me to reach that level too…"

"A Super Elite, huh?" Bardock mused. "What's your father's name?"

"Zorn. He's right over there," Mezai pointed him out in the hunting group, on the other side of the community firepit. Bardock glanced at the man, thinking. After a moment's thought he looked back at Mezai.

"If your father is a Super Elite, then is he a _hilmir-margr_ like Kale?" Bardock asked.

Mezai's face lost some of its excitement as he replied. "No, he's not."

Bardock was confused.

"Why not?" He prodded. Mezai sighed.

"It's kind of a long story…I know that there are some things that Dad hasn't told me, but he's told enough," Mezai began. When Bardock made no sign of being disinterested, Mezai continued.

"Like I said before, Dad was a Super Elite back on Planet Vegeta. He was one of the King's best soldiers and he took the responsibility very seriously. He did everything he was told without question. Dad is also very perceptive of others' character, and when Frieza hired the Saiyans to do his dirty work, Dad didn't approve of it at all…"

A/N: *sigh* I seriously need to stop ending my chapters whenever someone's in the middle of talking…I really don't want to make my chapters too long and drawn out, but I still feel kind of bad about not having any fighting scenes, especially considering that the original manga/anime was focused on the fighting genre to begin with…

Oh well. Here's the latest chapter of Bardock's Journey. I think I'll get to work on the next chapter of my X-Men: Evolution story. See you next time, and please don't hate me for the lazy ending!


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Alright, I'm back from my XM:E story, finally. In case you're wondering, Zorn's character is not actually named in the original Japanese dub of the anime. That name is just something that the people at FUNimation came up with, clearly a play on the word 'corn'. I decided to follow that particular trend with Mezai, whose name is an anagram of 'maize', which is a Spanish term coming from the South American Taino word maiz. Maize, in case you don't know, is just another word for corn. At least, that's how the word is used here in North America…

Oh well. Here's the next chapter!

Chapter 6

~ ~ ~ Previously~ ~ ~

"If your father is a Super Elite, then is he a _hilmir-margr_ like Kale?" Bardock asked.

Mezai's face lost some of its excitement as he shook his head 'no'.

"Why not?" Bardock asked. Mezai sighed.

"It's kind of a long story…I know there are some things that Dad hasn't told me, but he's told enough," Mezai began. When Bardock made no sign of being disinterested, Mezai continued.

"Like I said before, Dad was a Super Elite, back on Planet Vegeta. He was one of the King's best soldiers and he took the responsibility very seriously. He did everything he was told without question. Dad is also very perceptive about other people's character, and when Frieza hired the Saiyans to do his dirty work, Dad didn't approve of it at all…"

~ ~ ~DBZ~ ~ ~

"…But of course he kept quiet about it, until Frieza requested the Prince to come and work for him personally. Dad outright told the King not to give up the Prince, but…Freiza didn't really give King Vegeta any choice." Mezai was quiet for a moment, pensive, before continuing.

"When the King handed over Prince Vegeta to Frieza…I don't know, maybe Dad felt like the King didn't need him anymore? For whatever reason, Dad decided to just leave the planet and let the others figure things out for themselves. Well, most of the others, anyway. A few of the other Super Elites and some of the First Class felt the same way that Dad did about giving up the Prince. Most of them decided to stay on Planet Vegeta anyway, but about a dozen of them stayed with Dad. They all 'borrowed' space pods and left at night when most of the others would be asleep. By the time Dad and the others landed on another planet to refuel and stuff, Planet Vegeta was already gone."

Bardock said nothing, not knowing what to think of such a turn of events. He could understand why a low class warrior like Turles would go solo and maybe some of the First Class, but a Super Elite?

Mezai sighed again, and went on.

"When Dad and his group of…rebels…found out about Planet Vegeta's destruction, they started traveling incognito. They took apart their space pods, sold them as scrap and spare parts on the local black market, and got another ship big enough for all of them. After that, they wandered around the galaxy for a year or two, until one time the ship malfunctioned. It was actually a very simple repair job, but Dad's group still had to land planet-side to do repairs. So they landed on the nearest planet, and they noticed right off that no one was there. No one, except a low class Saiyan child. That was me."

"How long had you been on that planet?" Bardock asked. Mezai frowned in thought.

"I was about two years old when Dad and the others found me. I was probably sent away from Planet Vegeta just a few days before it was destroyed." Mezai shrugged, not really caring about that particular detail of the story.

"When Dad found me, he got the idea that if I was sent away from Planet Vegeta before it was destroyed, maybe other low class infants had been sent away too." Mezai continued. "Dad and his group took me off that planet and went on wandering, only this time they kept an eye out for any unusually deserted planets. They figured that those planets would be the ones where low class Saiyan children had been sent to clear them out, and if the child was still there Dad would get them on the ship and out of danger's way."

Bardock had a hunch what Mezai meant by danger. "Freiza's soldiers?"

Mezai nodded. "Dad figured that Frieza might not be bothered to track down and kill young, untrained low class Saiyans, but he kept an eye out for Frieza's people just in case. Most of the adults here are low class Saiyans that Dad found as babies years ago."

Bardock nodded, frowning in thought. "I still don't see why your father shouldn't be a _hilmir-margr_, since he is a Super Elite…"

Mezai shook his head. "I don't really know, either…Like I said before, Dad hasn't told me everything."

Mezai said no more, and Bardock was silent as well. Just when the silence was getting awkward, Mezai spoke up again.

"Well, I'm just going to go see Mitsuba now," he said, shifting his weight rather nervously. "I hope you enjoy your stay here, Bardock."

With these words and one last smile, Mezai turned and stepped into the doctor's hut. Bardock stayed where he was, watching the other Saiyans and mulling over the information he had heard so far. After a few moments, he could hear Mitsuba lecturing the young man on the importance of using clean materials for a bandage and how to make one properly.

The light in the clearing was fading, sunset was not far off. Grolo was idly chatting with Kale and the other _hilmir-margr_. Most of the women were still attentively supervising the cooking meat, and a few were organizing and arranging what looked like a pile of cured animal skins with the hair removed and cut into large square pieces of leather. The children, having finished cleaning and preparing the garden produce, were lurking around the edges of the center clearing and giggling as they talked over some silly thing. A few of the older children were trying to make shadow pictures against one of the huts. The men stood or sat in small scattered groups about the firepit and amongst the center huts, talking man-talk and casting impatient glances at the food.

Presently, Bardock saw Ban'hau return to the village with another Kakumin; this one was female, older and clearly more experienced. She was dressed in black clothing like Ban'hau, but her costume was more elaborate in comparison. She wore the loosely fitted trousers and a shirt with one sleeve, tied in at the waist with a matching cloth sash. There were narrow black leather bands wrapped around her forearms and lower legs in an interwoven pattern, and on the top third of her tail as well. There was a black metal band on her bare upper arm, and Bardock could see a trio of small hoop earrings in each ear. The black wrapped handle of a sword strapped on her back peeked out from beneath her thick shaggy hair that hung to her shoulders.

Ban'hau and the female Kakumin made their way to the center firepit and approached Kale and Grolo. They talked for a moment, and the female Kakumin glanced about the center ring of huts until her gaze rested on Bardock. He met the female Kakumin's eyes squarely; he could see that they were a muted shade of orange. The female Kakumin studied him for a moment with a neutral expression, before turning back to Ban'hau and the others.

After a moment more of discussion, Grolo and the female Kakumin separated themselves from the others and moved over to a clear space in the shadow of one of the huts. The Kakumin woman paused for a moment, assuming an expression of concentration. As Bardock looked on, he was surprised to see the hut's shadow move by itself, in a way that no shadow should.

The Kakumin woman seemed satisfied with this event, and took hold of Grolo's shoulder before moving quickly towards the shadow. Grolo, apparently knowing how this process worked, kept pace with her as one. Just when it seemed that both of them would run headlong into the wall of the hut, the shadow swirled in an odd way…next moment, they had vanished, and the shadow returned to normal. All of this had happened in less than five seconds.

Bardock wasn't sure what had just happened, but nobody seemed to think it was unusual. Indeed, many of the Saiyan children had watched Grolo and the Kakumin woman disappear into the shadows with some envy. He would have to ask about that later. Bardock turned his attention back to the other Saiyans. The women at the fire seemed to be discussing something together, and after a few moments one of them stood up and shouted so everyone could hear.

"The food is almost ready! Everyone, in your places!"

There was a general stampede as every Saiyan hurried to find their family's clan and get a good spot close to the food. A few of the women began passing out the large square pieces of leather, one square to the head of each family group. After a few minutes of dizzying activity and last minute searching for wayward family members, things became a littler more organized. Everyone began to sit down on the ground in little groups around their designated square of leather, a short distance away from the fire.

Bardock saw Kale in one of the groups beckoning him over. Bardock's stomach let out a growl; he shrugged and left his place against the hut. If Kale was offering to share his food, then Bardock couldn't really complain.

A/N: Hmm…Probably not the best place to end the chapter, but I least I didn't interrupt my characters again, right? By the way, does anyone want me to post the translations for the Norse and Japanese words that I use in this story? If so just PM me or something.


	7. Ch, 7: Author's Notes

**Author's Notes**

**Hi everyone! Before someone starts panicking or yelling at me, let me point out that just because you see this author's note DOES NOT mean that this story is discontinued. I will finish this story! I'm only putting up this A/N to tell you all something important.**

**POLL TIME!**

**One of my reviewers has given me some very good suggestions for when Tarble and Bardock go to Earth and meet Vegeta and Goku. While the actual suggestions in the review wouldn't work with what I have in mind, it did get me seriously thinking about how I was going to handle that situation when it comes. So, I'm setting up a little poll about Bardock and you, the readers, get to decide what will happen! The question and choices are as follows:**

**Q: When should Bardock come to Earth?**

**1) During the one year's time between Raditz's death and Nappa's & Vegeta's arrival.**

**2) At about the same time that Goku lands on Earth after the Namek saga and encounters Future Trunks.**

**Just PM me with your answer and any other suggestions you might have, and whichever choice has the most PM's will happen! If there's a tie, I'll just flip a coin for it. The poll starts Thursday, April 4, 2013, and it will end in exactly one month, on Saturday, May 4, 2013.**

**Tell me what you think, people!**

**P.S. I will be doing all of my author's notes in bold like this from now on.**


	8. Author's Note Please Read

Hi everyone. I'm sorry, but I won't be able to update any of my stories for awhile. My parents and I have been having some discussions about my future (college, working towards getting my driver's license, possibly moving out, ect.) and both of them have insisted that until I start showing some initiative in the 'real world', I will essentially be grounded from writing any more stories. Don't worry, I WILL get back to writing and updating my stories, but that won't happen until my parents are satisfied that I have my act together in the real world. That could be several months or even a few years. So, as of Sunday, April 7, 2013, all of my stories on 'pause' until further notice. I know the more faithful of my readers will be very disappointed with this turn of events, but until I straighten up this is all I got.


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